I’ve been meaning to write an update for a little while but just haven’t gotten to it. Writing here is a way for me to journal this crazy experience as much as it is for me to update everyone. Sometimes my need to write compels me to do it, and sometimes I’m not in the mood. Lately, it's been a little hard to get myself into writing mode.

We are more settled into our new house! We’ve been painting downstairs and continuing to unpack, though I feel like we still have a long way to go. We’ve put together some barstools for the kitchen and our new Murphy bed for guests. We’re working on some play room organizers and finally got “the bubble” rebuilt out back. Our big shelf got mounted and we’re trying to get my swing hung up. We still have a lot more painting to do, and I need to hang all my pictures still! It's getting there though. We did manage to get all of our outdoor Christmas decor up too!

Both boys are doing very well at school and had great conferences right before Halloween. Ronan puts on a tough facade and makes complaints but he really likes his teacher and he comes home every day in a good mood after school. Mornings are just tough sometimes when he wants to play and hang out but has to get ready. We are so proud of him for how well he's keeping up with having missed SO much last year, even with tutoring, due to gaps and stop/starts and not feeling well so much of the time. Official tutoring didn't even get started until December last year. His reading has gotten so good and he's really starting to enjoy it. It's so fun that both boys are loving more interesting books too! Ronan is very into the Titanic right now and Jack has started Harry Potter with me! We even turned the closet under our stairs into "The Library" with their bookshelves and comfy pillows and fun lights. The boys love it. As expected, Jack is loving school so much, is making lots of friends, and is doing great. He is starting to sound out some words, and is counting by 10s, and sometimes he isn't skipping 13 when he's counting. Haha. He's still a little math smarty.

Halloween was a blast this year. We did our usual get together with Cailey and Vini and the kids, and this year fell on a Friday so we had a sleepover. We did Jack-O-lantern pizzas. We also did a big group costume this year since the theme was a big one, Halloween classics! This is the first year we did much with make-up and everything turned out super good. The Nightmare Before Christmas rounded out the evening for the kids and then games for the adults. It was fun for everyone, a core memory I hope. I got emotional thinking about last Halloween, which was one of our most "normal" nights after months that felt so hard. Ronan was still missing most of his hair. It feels like we've lived an entire lifetime since then but it's only been a year. 

Ronan was on a chemo hold for a couple of weeks and got an ear infection for the first time since he had tubes in at the same time he had his reflux surgery. It wasn't too big a deal...but then he was really wiped out and sleeping on the couch all day. Bryce and I didn't have to say anything to know we were both internally flashing back to the weeks before diagnosis. We knew his counts were low and we knew he was fighting off his ear infection but we were also so shaken to see him like that. There's been periods he hasn't felt well through treatment but even on heavy hitting chemos, with fevers, low counts, etc. he hasn't been truly wiped out like that very often. I think we were both internally freaking out, and even Jack was extremely worried. It's weird this part of treatment. Everything can feel pretty good, and then we are transported right back in that trauma none of us are really over. It was a weird night for everyone. 

Thankfully, Ronan rebounded quickly. We all made it through the weird night. We also saw his oncologist a couple of days later and she was very reassuring. Ronan's blood counts were low so any added thing could make him feel extremely tired. Despite that, he was able to re-start his chemo as his platelets and ANC had recovered to a safe level. He started his meds at a lower dosage than he was on previously and they added in a new medicine to help his body metabolize his chemo correctly. We've had two sets of labs since starting that and it seems to be working! His hemoglobin and platelets were still a little low but not chemo hold low. We're hoping that was still just part of the adjustment period! Blood sugars have been better and we haven't needed corn starch for several days! Fingers crossed this next set of labs is even better. His kidneys didn't have great numbers during his last set of labs but we're hoping that he was just a little dehydrated when they were drawn since previous ones looked good! He picked up what appears to be another little virus this week but it's just that season. We just hope for no fevers and no major issues. 

We’ve had some wonderful things this last month like visits from old friends, an impromptu trip to the coast, lots of sunshine, and dinners with people we care about. We also got to go to the Air and Space Museum on Star Wars Day which was fun. The boys got to wear their non-Halloween costumes and go as Darth Vader and Kylo Ren. 

Aside from our day to day, there's been a lot going on around us! A couple of family members have had run ins with some medical stresses lately. We are so incredibly relieved that things are okay, but I won't say it didn't shake us a bit. It’s just one more reminder for us to hold loved ones tight and be thankful for all the moments we get. As the world around us is heavy in so many ways right now, I am reminded to be grateful for so much. 

I think that's all I've got for tonight. I hope you all are well.